Physical activity in youth is an important public health issue and regular participation
in physical activity can contribute to the enhancement of young people's physical,
psychological, and social well-being. However, adolescent girls typically have lower
levels of physical activity than boys and their rates of participation decline rapidly
during this age period. This thesis presents four studies examining factors influencing
adolescent girls' likelihood of being physically active, and reasons for this decline in
physical activity across the teenage years. Study 1 is a systematic review of the
literature of correlates of participation in physical activity for adolescent girls. Study
2 uses a qualitative approach to explore potential influences of adolescent girls'
physical activity, and how physical activity might be made more attractive to these
girls. Study 3 uses a quantitative approach to examine the role of selected socialpsychological
and physical environmental factors in three different types of sport and
physical activity. Study 4 presents six case, studies examining in greater depth some
of the ways in which social-psychological factors can impact on physical activity
decisions. Overall findings suggest that aspects of the physical environment can be
influential to particular activity types; this is an under-researched area and attempts
should be made to further examine girls' perceptions of their environment so that safe
and attractive provisions can be made. These attempts should be specific to particular
activity types to enable the best possible understanding of potential environmental.
Participation in organised sport also appears to account for differences in overall
physical activity levels, and it is proposed that more gender-specific organised sport
should be made available. Findings in relation to significant others indicate that
parental support and encouragement may be more influential than parental role
modelling, while the role of friends changes across the teenage years. Here, education
programmes for whole families and interventions designed to change behaviour
across groups of friends are recommended. Finally, self-presentational concerns
appear to be related to actual body size and can serve to either increase or decrease
physical activity participation. It is proposed that activities should be offered that
emphasise fun and enjoyment, de-emphasise the importance of physical appearance,
and stress that physical activity is equally acceptable across individuals of all shapes
and sizes.

Description:

Doctoral Thesis. Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the award of Doctor of Philosophy of Loughborough University.